The development, introduction or implementation of new or significantly improved goods, services, processes or methods is generally considered to be innovation. Innovation is often seen as a continuous process. Therefore, it can be difficult to measure, and aspects of the process can also be intangible. An international framework, the 'Oslo Manual, Guidelines for Collecting and Interpreting Innovation Data', has been developed jointly by Eurostat and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to aid in measuring the process of innovation. This manual, updated in 2005, forms the basis of concepts and definitions used to measure the incidence of innovation in Australian business using the Business Characteristics Survey (BCS). The BCS collects information about the broad types and status of innovation undertaken by Australian business in the 12 month reference period. For more detail about these concepts and definitions, please refer to the Explanatory Notes and the Glossary.

The measures of innovation included in this release are not directly comparable with those included in earlier issues of this catalogue. The ABS has expanded and improved the range of information collected on practices and influences related to innovation in Australian businesses. A summary of these changes and the range of innovation statistics available are shown in Appendix 1: ABS collection of innovation statistics.

Changes to scope associated with the updated Australian and New Zealand Standard Industry Classification 2006 (ANZSIC06) were implemented for the 2006-07 BCS. These changes have also affected comparability with data previously collected in the BCS on the ANZSIC93 basis. For more information about the impact of moving to ANZSIC06 on innovation statistics, please refer to Appendix 2: Changes to Industry Classification.

Commentary included in this section is sourced from both the tables presented here and data cubes that accompany this release.

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